Bouvier and Kauffman Families

Franklin Howard Conner

Person Chart

Parents

Father	Date of Birth	Mother	Date of Birth
Willis C Conner	17 Nov 1875	Florence Brown	28 Jun 1880

Person Events

Event Type	Date	Place
Birth	06 Aug 1906	Lyndon, Caledonia County, Vermont, United States
Death	07 Oct 1962	Lyndon, Caledonia County, Vermont, United States
Burial		Lyndon Center Cemetery, Caledonia County, Vermont, United States

Notes


Franklin was my great-uncle and I man I never met. As I wrote this an increasing number of states had legalized gay marriage. President Obama was just beginning his second term when he announced his support for gay and lesbian rights, following a tipping point in public opinion, and followed by a sea change of opinion by our elected officials. As I wrote this I wished I could reach into the past and bring Franklin back with me. You see, the “good ‘ole days” weren’t so good for my uncle. The so called greatest generation fought a just war overseas, only to return and go along with the long fought war against people who stood out as different. In my uncle’s case, it was people born inside a trap of shame, hiding, ridicule, harassment, and ugly prejudice due to sexual preference. From what I can tell half a century later, he was a funny, kind, loving and good man - but also a lonely, isolated, and gay man. He killed himself after half a century of life in his world. The world we live in is far from perfect but for Franklin I think it would be a huge improvement. I can’t tell you with certainty why he killed himself, but I can’t help but wonder if his world was a big part of it, and my world might have saved him.

Franklin was my great-uncle and I man I never met.

As I wrote this an increasing number of states had legalized gay marriage. President Obama was just beginning his second term when he announced his support for gay and lesbian rights, following a tipping point in public opinion, and followed by a sea change of opinion by our elected officials. As I wrote this I wished I could reach into the past and bring Franklin back with me. You see, the “good ‘ole days” weren’t so good for my uncle. The so called greatest generation fought a just war overseas, only to return and go along with the long fought war against people who stood out as different. In my uncle’s case, it was people born inside a trap of shame, hiding, ridicule, harassment, and ugly prejudice due to sexual preference. From what I can tell half a century later, he was a funny, kind, loving and good man - but also a lonely, isolated, and gay man. He killed himself after half a century of life in his world.

The world we live in is far from perfect but for Franklin I think it would be a huge improvement. I can’t tell you with certainty why he killed himself, but I can’t help but wonder if his world was a big part of it, and my world might have saved him.

Sources

Description	Page	Quality	Information	Evidence
VT Death Certificate		Don't know	Don't know	Don't know

Media

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franklin conner

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VT Death Certificate

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